petrifiedforest

I’ve always had a penchant for hostage movies. I don’t know why. Maybe it’s because I like seeing
how unwilling captives adapt to their confinement and how they organize to plan their escapes.
Film’s like “Rawhide” with Tyrone Power (“The Mark of Zorro”) and even those as recent as “Die
Hard” tend to hook me.

So it is with great pleasure that I introduce you to one of the original hostage films, “The Petrified
Forest,” starring Humphrey Bogart in his first major screen role, along with Leslie Howard and a
young Bette Davis. The film is about a small gas station and diner in the middle of the American
desert named The Petrified Forest. Few people come through the desolate area.

Davis is the waitress at the diner when a series of events makes for a rather interesting day. First,
Howard drifts on in, a nomadic and very pretentious writer whose lost his inspiration and is just
floating through the Western United States like a hobo. While he and Davis are engaged in heady
conversation and falling in love, the gas station attendant is getting jealous because the big lug has
been clumsily vying for her affections the entire time. Things take a turn when notorious outlaw
Duke Mantee and his posse waltz into the diner with a few more hostages.

There, they plan to lay low until the manhunt dies down and then meet up with their cohorts. Until
then, it’s Duke and his boys with their guns trained on David, Howard and the rest of the hostages.

Based on a popular stage play of the period, the movie is really an exploration by every character
for a purpose in life, with Howard being the most pathetic example of this. The dialogue in the
majority of the film is extremely interesting, even if some of the characters’ reactions aren’t totally
realistic. Bogart and Davis bring great weight to this story and Bogart, who played Duke in the
stage version, comes off as a cold and jittery criminal, rightfully paranoid of being caught or killed.

My main criticism of this movie is Leslie Howard’s character. With all due respect to the late and
brave Mr. Howard, who gave his life in the Bay of Biscay in 1943 during World War II, his film career
seemed to leave behind a legacy of needlessly melodramatic Nancy boys who just couldn’t get their
feelings together. Between this character and his role in “Intermezzo,” Howard’s pantheon of roles
includes some sissy characters to be sure.

Here, Howard’s character falls instantly in love with Davis for no good reason and then he
unexpectedly signs over his life insurance policy to her, even though he’s only known her for five
minutes. After that, in the strangest character twist I’ve ever seen, he asks Duke to shoot him
before the gangsters make their getaway. Even Bogie’s violent character is incredulous, and the
look on his face is priceless with that, “What the hell is wrong with you?” look.

All in all, “The Petrified Forest” is a decent little gangster drama. Its generally great performances
and unique setting, as well as Bogart’s breakout performance, make it must-see cinema.